Chapter 15

San Juan Capistrano, CA - 2022

Halona squinted, trying to picture the landscape as she remembered it. The changes were huge, making it hard to connect the dots. As she followed Michael toward the cemetery, a weird feeling of déjà vu hit her. Closing her eyes for a sec, she tried to get her bearings. South of the house, behind the barn - that's where her garden used to be. She snapped her eyes open and picked up the pace to catch up with Michael.

These weren't just dreams. These were her memories, pieces of a life she once lived. Not made-up stories her mind had cooked up, but real experiences, etched in time. At first, she felt relieved - no kidnapping, no assault, no unwanted pregnancy. But then came the crushing realization - she'd lost Buck, the kids, the life they'd built together.

"My wife and I don't keep up with celebrity gossip, so when the police told us who you were, it went right over our heads," Michael chuckled, completely oblivious to the emotional turmoil churning within Halona. "No offense intended, of course."

"None taken," she managed, a strained laugh escaping her lips.

"I have seen a few of your movies, though," he continued, a hint of pride in his voice.

"I hope you enjoyed them."

"Very much so." He hitched his thumbs through his suspenders, a broad smile on his face.

"Can you tell me about them?" She tried to ask as casually as possible. "Your ancestors?"

"They moved here in eighteen seventy-one from Texas." He led her through the orchard. "Buck Cross and his wife, with their children Isaac and Megan. Though in researching our family history, we found the children were actually her stepchildren."

"His wife?" Halona echoed, her voice barely a whisper. Her heart raced, her breath caught in her throat. That was her.

Michael gave her a questioning look before continuing. "We're not exactly sure of her name. Most of the records were destroyed in the fire that took the old house back in the twenties."

A strange sense of comfort washed over Halona, tinged with bittersweet pain. It was a relief to know what happened to her family, even though it meant they were gone. She never got to raise the children or grow old with Buck. Tears welled up in her eyes, threatening to spill over. All her youth she had dreamed of the life she was now living, but all she wanted now was her husband, her children, her family.

"Megan's kid's moved north to Oregon," Michael continued, carefully clearing dirt from the headstones. "So none of her family is buried here."

"How many children did she have?" Halona choked out, her voice thick with emotion.

"Two boys and a girl," Michael replied, wiping away a speck of dirt from a headstone. "Isaac had two boys himself, but one passed away just a few days after birth. He's buried here with Isaac and his wife, Marciella."

"Marciella?" Halona spun around, her eyes wide with surprise. The name resonated within her, a missing piece of the puzzle clicking into place.

"She was the daughter of their foreman. Here is Megan and her husband Horace." He explained. "The Aguella family raised Isaac and Megan."

A giant headstone stood out in the cemetery, and Halona walked towards it, her legs shaky. She knelt down in front of it, carefully pulling away dirt and leaves that covered the writing. As she read the words carved into the stone, the world seemed to tilt around her. She grabbed onto the cold, smooth stone to steady herself.

The top corner of the headstone was broken, hiding parts of the names.

A horrible truth hit Halona all at once:

In loving memory Buck and Halona Cross May they find each other again.

Dread choked Halona's voice as she stammered, "What happened to them?"

Michael chuckled nervously. "Well, that's our family ghost story. Nobody knows for sure. Mostly just rumors and stories passed down through the years."

Tears welled up in Halona's eyes. Just an hour ago, she'd convinced herself these memories were dreams. But standing here, on this very land, she knew. This wasn't a fantasy. This had been her life. She wasn't crazy, but there was no way to explain the truth clawing at her. This was her family, her husband. Her grip tightened on the cold stone, a dam barely holding back a torrent of emotions. It wasn't every day you realized you were looking at your own gravestone. Tears streamed down her face as her hand touched the ground. Buck was truly gone. No amount of prayers or tears would bring him back.

"Mrs. Cross," Michael began, shaking his head, "she vanished the year they moved here. There were rumors in an old newspaper we found, talk of her abandoning them. Some folks even thought her husband killed her, or maybe she had an accident and he hid the body."

Halona gasped, her mouth agape in horror. "That's awful!"

"Of course, our family prefers to believe it was an accident," Michael conceded. "But who can say for sure?"

"What about Buck?" She choked out.

"Everything we know about the family is from Megan's diary," Michael continued, his voice dropping to a dramatic whisper, "after she disappeared, everyone noticed a big change in him. Six months later, he just… vanished too."

"What?" Halona's voice barely rose above a whisper.

"That's where the ghost story comes in," Michael said with a raised eyebrow and a smile. "Some folks believe he just walked off into the woods. There were years of rumors about a wild man living out there. Even kids today say they see him haunting the place."

"No one knows what happened to him?" The weight of the revelation pressed down on Halona. She sat there, motionless, her chin trembling.

"We figure he probably took his own life," Michael said gently, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Her head swiveled back and forth in horror. No, not her Buck. He would never have abandoned his children. No, he didn't kill himself. She was certain of that.

Halona barely managed to stammer, "I'm sorry," as she fought to regain her composure and stand up. "I just got a little dizzy."

Seeing her distress, Michael wrapped a comforting arm around her. "Come inside, sit down for a moment."